Hazel & Katniss & Harry & Starr

The Kissing Booth 2 (2020)

02 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe return to the world of Wattpad to check out Beth Reekles' 2020 sequel, The Kissing Booth 2: Going The Distance, as well as its Netflix ...

Mailbag 31: Adult Julie Murphy and Girls in STEM

29 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe answer emails from Tea, Books & Chocolate (about Julie Murphy's adult fiction novel Merry Little Meet Cute) and Alex (looking for r...

Wild Pork and Watercress (1986) / Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)

26 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe close out a month of New Zealand programming with a look at Barry Crump's 1986 novel Wild Pork and Watercress, as well as Taika Waititi...

Flight of the Albatross (1989)

19 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

New Zealand month enters its third week as Brenna and Joe tackle Deborah Savage's 1989 book Flight of the Albatross.Despite being very readable, we're...

Whale Rider

12 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

New Zealand month continues as we tackle our first Māori text with Witi Ihimaera's 1987 novel and Niki Caro's 2002 film adaptation.The book is short ...

Mailbag 30: Dutch Margaret Mahy

08 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Listener Miriam writes in with her reflections on Margaret Mahy's The Catalogue of the Universe, its Dutch language title and book cover, and why it a...

The Catalogue of the Universe (1985)

05 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

New Zealand month begins with a classic text: Margaret Mahy's The Catalogue of the Universe (1985).Brenna and Joe discuss the literary prose, the need...

Mailbag 29: YA Isn't Just For Young Adults (Shocker)

01 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Guest Alex Heeney trolls Brenna and Joe with an article from The Millions entitled "YA Isn't Just For Young Adults". Naturally we have thoughts, inclu...

One of Us is Lying

27 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe venture to California to discuss Karen M. McManus' 2017 book One of Us is Lying and S01 of Erica Saleh's 2021 TV series.We're discussin...

Dark Rise (2021)

20 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Following recommendations from listeners Emma and Line, we're finally checking out C.S. Pacat's Dark Rise (2021).The magical fantasy text features a m...

Mailbag 28: Toxic Fandom

16 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Using Twilight as a launchpad, listener Victoria prompts Brenna and Joe to consider the differences between good and toxic fandom, using examples from...

Orion and the Dark

13 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

We're skewing extremely young with our latest pick: Emma Yarlett's 2014 picture book Orion and the Dark, and Sean Charmatz's 2024 animated adaptation....

Wonka (2023)

06 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

You've never had a Wonka movie like this before! Well...unless you've seen writer/director Paul King's Paddington films, which have a lot of shared DN...

Mailbag 27: Twilight Book Club

02 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Now that we're recording regularly again, Brenna and Joe are back with new Mailbag episodes. To kick off 2024, Tea, Books and Chocolates writes in to ...

The Twilight Saga: New Moon feat. Jenny Nulf

30 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

It's Stephenie Meyer time as we, along with returning guest Jenny Nulf, tackle the second title in The Twilight Saga: New Moon.Our main take-away? Thi...

The Edge of Seventeen (2016)

23 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

The second half of our "17" double bill concludes with Kelly Fremon Craig's The Edge of Seventeen (2016) which finds Hailee Steinfeld playing a frustr...

Aristotle and Dante Discover The Secrets of the Universe

16 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

It's finally time for Brenna and Joe to discover Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, Benjamin Alire Sáenz's award-winning 2012 ...

17 Again (2009)

09 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna wanted to remember Matthew Perry, so we're revisiting Burr Steers' 17 Again (2009) starring Perry and Zac Efron.While some of this hasn't aged ...

Loveboat Taipei / Love in Taipei

02 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe kick off 2024 with Abigail Hing Wen's fantastic 2020 book Loveboat Taipei ...and Arvin Chen's extremely generic 2023 film adaptation, L...

Mailbag 26: Brenna's Top 5 YA Scandals

22 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe squeeze in one final Mailbag for the year. At the request of listener Tea, Books and Chocolate, we're talking about the juiciest of YA ...

My True Love Gave To Me (2014)

19 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe celebrate the holiday season with a look at the Stephanie Perkins-edited collection of seasonal stories.We chat about the stories we li...

Mailbag 25: Dark Rise Recommendation

15 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Here's a short and sweet Mailbag from Tasmanian listener Emily, with a recommendation for a future read: Dark Rise by C.S. Pacat.Wanna connect with th...

Willy Wonka / Charlie & The Chocolate Factory

12 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We've got a golden ticket! To coincide with the release of new film Wonka, Brenna and Joe dip into Roald Dahl's problematic 1964 Charlie and the Choco...

The Shamer's Daughter

05 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks to listener Charlotte, we're checking out The Shamer's Daughter, book one in Lene Kaaberbøl's The Shamer Chronicles, as well its 2015 film ada...

Mailbag 24: Bat Mitzvah

04 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

After our episode on You Are So Not Invited To My Bat Mitzvah, listener Tea, Books & Chocolate wrote in to share her experiences, including expens...

You Are So Not Invited To My Bat Mitzvah

28 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe are working on our Mitzvahs as we discuss Fiona Rosenbloom's 2005 book You Are So Not Invited To My Bat Mitzvah and its 2023 Netflix ad...

Mailbag 23: Alanna Recommendation / Imogen Consolation

24 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We're responding to mail from listeners Aimee, who has an Alanna-inspired contemporary recommendation, and Victoria, who is drawing on lessons from Im...

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (2023)

21 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe return to Panem for The Hunger Games prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, directed by franchise regular Francis Lawrence.While ...

Mockingjay Part 2 feat. Alex Heeney

14 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We're wrapping up Mockingjay which means our resident The Hunger Games expert Alex Heeney of Seventh Row is back!We're closing out the back half of Su...

Mailbag 22: Cursive

10 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe gush over new listener Chantal's cool grandmother (reader of Harlequin romance novels), then sidestep into a conversation about cursive...

Reservation Dogs S03

07 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe bid a sad farewell to S03 of Reservation Dogs. We spend a lot of time discussing the use of elders, the unique portrayal of the effects...

There's Someone Inside Your House

31 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe wrap up another Spooky Season with Stephanie Perkins' 2017 slasher novel There's Someone Inside Your House and Patrick Brice's 2021 Net...

Goosebumps feat. Paul Farrell

24 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We're still on the gateway horror track with a look at three R.L. Stine texts and Rob Letterman's 2015 film adaptation, starring Jack Black (again!)Gu...

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark

17 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Spooky Season continues as Brenna and Joe tackle Alvin Schwartz's collection of folklore urban legends, as well as André Øvredal's 2019 adaptation.W...

Love and Monsters (2021)

10 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Spooky Month continues, but we're moving away from scares into drippy monsters! Thankfully Michael Matthews's Love and Monsters features plenty of com...

Mailbag 21: Alanna Apology & Political Dystopias

06 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Mailbag returns with an Alanna apology to Earl, a political dystopia discussion for Tea, Books & Chocolate and a thank you to Eric, who appreciate...

The House with a Clock in Its Walls feat. Dede Crimmins

03 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Spooky Season begins with a look at John Bellairs' 1973 franchise starter The House with a Clock in Its Walls, as well as Eli Roth's 2018 adaptation. ...

Queens Bees & Wannabes / Mean Girls

26 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On Tuesdays we wear pink! After many years of missing Oct 3, Brenna and Joe *finally* cover Mark Waters 2004's film Mean Girls and its source material...

First Daughter (2004)

19 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Joey is off to College in this film from director Forest Whitaker (!) from a story by Jerry O'Connell (!!)Alas that's what's most interesting about th...

A Sister (2017) / Falcon Lake (2022)

12 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe kick off Book Six with Bastien Vivès' 2017 comic Une Soeur/A Sister and Charlotte LeBon's film, Falcon Lake (2022). C/W: Vivès is und...

Allegiant

05 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's the end of Book Five, so we're closing the door on Veronica Roth's Divergent series with a look at her 2013 book Allegiant and director Robert Sc...

Mailbag 20: More on Alanna

01 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We missed listener Victoria's contributions to Book Club, so we're revisiting Alanna: The First Adventure to talk about a few extra scenes.Wanna conne...

Alanna: The First Adventure (1983)

29 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's our last Book Club for the year! Brenna and Joe are joined by listeners Emma, Charlotte and Tea, Books & Chocolate to discuss Tamora Pierce's...

Mailbag 19: More on Red, White & Royal Blue

28 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We have follow-up work from our Red, White & Royal Blue episode, including an apology (courtesy of Miriam) about Casey McQuiston's pronouns, and t...

Mailbag 18: Ben & Heartstopper S02

25 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and (moreso) Joe discuss listener Andrew's response about Joe feeling bad for Ben in Heartstopper S02.Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on...

Red, White & Royal Blue

22 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe are late to Casey McQuiston's phenom Red, White & Royal Blue which has just been adapted to film by Matthew López for Amazon.We're...

Imogen, Obviously (2022)

15 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We couldn't help but discuss Becky Albertalli's new book Imogen, Obviously which feels like a semi-autobiographical account of the author's own experi...

Heartstopper S02 (2023)

08 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Who's ready for Paris?! Brenna and Joe return to the world of Alice Oseman's Heartstopper for S02 of the Netflix series, which loosely corresponds to ...

Piglettes (2015)

01 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks to listener Laura's recommendation, Brenna and Joe check out Clémentine Beauvais' delightful Piglettes (2015) about three fat girls who bike t...

Tomorrow, When The War Began

25 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks to listener Miriam, we're tackling John Marsden's Tomorrow, When The War Began (1993), as well as its 2010 film adaptation by Stuart Beattie an...

Mailbag 17: Can Literature Change The World?

21 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week's mailbag is courtesy of listener Victoria, who asks if it's possible for literature to incite change anymore. Despite Brenna and Joe's init...

Stolen (Book Club)

18 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

At the behest of listener Evelina, we're reading 2023's Stolen, by Sami author Ann-Helén Laestadius. C/W: graphic animal murder.Using contributions f...

Mailbag 16: Defining NA

14 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks to listener Neera, Brenna and Joe cook up a definition of NA (New Adult), who or what falls into it, and why agents shouldn't dismissive of the...

Nimona (2023)

11 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

After waiting forever, Brenna and Joe finally get to watch Nick Bruno and Troy Quane's feature film adaptation of Nimona (2023) and it's...fine?Ok, it...

Mailbag 15: What's a Wattpad?

07 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Listener Tea, Books & Chocolate asks the important question: what *is* Wattpad? Brenna and Joe discuss the platform's model, why we have issues wi...

The Summer I Turned Pretty S01 (2022)

04 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Zzzzzz.Oh sorry, Brenna and Joe fell asleep trying to read Jenny Han's debut YA novel The Summer I Turned Pretty and watch her seven episode Amazon TV...

Clone High S02 (2023)

27 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Joe introduces Brenna to the silly, satirical humour of Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and Bill Lawrence's Clone High (we watched all 10 episodes of S0...

Mailbag 14: Monkey Beach Genre Exercise

23 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Listener Jessica writes in with details about how she used the show's Monkey Beach episode as a genre categorization exercise for her university stude...

Through My Window

20 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Ready for more Wattpad? Brenna and Joe are utterly baffled by Arianna Godoy's 2022 novel Through My Window, as well the lack of chemistry between the ...

Ready When You Are (Book Club)

13 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We're headed Down Under to discuss Gary Lonesborough's beautiful text, Ready When You Are.Joining us are listeners Tea, Books & Chocolate, Victori...

American Born Chinese

06 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe tag along on a Chinese quest as we read Gene Luen Yang's exquisite 2006 comic American Born Chinese and watch Kelvin Yu's eight episode...

XO, Kitty (2023) feat. Jenny Nulf

30 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks to listener demand, Brenna spends 5 hours with her least favourite To All The Boys I've Loved Before character: Kitty, who gets the spin-off tr...

Mailbag 13: Library Thing List

26 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On this week's mailbag, Brenna stumbled onto a Library Thing list created by norabelle414 that has documented all of the books we've read. We love it!...

Moffie

23 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks to listener Alex, Brenna and Joe head to South Africa to discuss conscription, Apartheid, and queer New Adults in André Carl van der Merwe's s...

Mailbag 12: Menstruation

19 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Following Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret, listener Tea, Books & Chocolate writes in to recommend books about menstruation, including Tamora...

Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret (2023)

16 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

After 50 years and a few delays, we're *finally* talking about Kelly Fremon Craig's Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret, only our second Judy Blume ...

Sorta Like A Rock Star (2010) / All Together Now (2020)

09 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Ready for a discussion neither Brenna or Joe wanted to have? We're ready to tackle Matthew Quick's 2010 novel Sorta Like A Rock Star and Brett Haley's...

Mailbag 11: "Not Gay Enough"

07 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On this week's mailbag, Tea, Books & Chocolate follows up on her Book Club email and zeroes in on the trans elements of Naomi Kanakia's We Are Tot...

We Are Totally Normal (Book Club)

02 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We're back with a contentious book club pick in Naomi Kanakia's We Are Totally Normal (2020), which is light on plot and big on (unimportant?) HS poli...

The Center Of The World (1998) / Center Of My World (2016)

25 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe travel to Germany for Andreas Steinhöfel's 1998 novel The Center of the World and (arbitrary title change alert!) Jakob M. Erwa's 2016...

Mailbag 10: Swedish Reparations

21 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On this week's mailbag, we hear from Swedish listener Evelina about reparations for the Sami people and we endeavour to read Stolen by Ann-Helené Lae...

Sami Blood (2016)

18 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe head to Sweden to discuss Amanda Kernell's 2016 film, Sami Blood. Thanks to listener Alex for recommending this one!This film is beauti...

Mailbag 9: Bulletin Board & Groot Recommendations

14 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Our eyes are watering (from all the dust in the air, of course) as we give thanks to listeners Aimee and Tea, Books and Chocolate for their recent ema...

Say Anything (1989) feat. Mike Snoonian

11 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Raise your boombox and get your yearbook signed because we're talking Cameron Crowe's feature directorial debut, Say Anything (1989). Along for the ri...

Mailbag 8: Relatability and Likeability

07 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On this week's mailbag, Joe makes a correction about listener Miriam, who also provides insight into what books are translated in the Netherlands.Plus...

Thumbsucker

04 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's disaffected middle class white boy problems as Brenna and Joe tackle Walter Kirn's 1999 novel Thumbsucker and Mike Mills' directorial debut from ...

Mailbag 7: Translation (Again) & Percentage of Access

31 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe are making it up to listener Jane, who we neglected to mention had previously written in about translated texts.We're continuing the co...

Apple: Skin To The Core (Book Club)

28 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's time for another book club and we have three listeners (Tea, Books, and Chocolate, Victoria, and Addie) who contributed their thoughts on Eric Ga...

Mailbag 6: Translation & Cultural Structures

24 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On this week's mailbag, Joe and Brenna go deep on a line in listener Laura's email pushing back on the challenges of reading a translated text. After ...

Emil and The Detectives

21 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We're headed to Berlin thanks to listener Alma's suggestion to check out famed German author Erich Kästner's Emil and the Detectives (1929), as well ...

Mailbag 5: Dahl Edits, Culture Wars and Authors Entering Review Spaces

17 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're responding to listener Kaetlyn's email about Roald Dahl's books being edited, why this isn't censorship, and how the culture war outra...

Plan B (2021)

14 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We've been good for too long, so it's time for some raunch courtesy of Natalie Morales' 2021 girls gross out comedy Plan B (seriously heed that R rati...

Mailbag 4: Why Do You Like YA?

10 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week's we're tackling listener Keith's question: why do you like YA? Bonus: the question spins us into a bit of a tangent as to why we also like ...

Monkey Beach

07 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe are checking out another Eden Robinson text: her award-winning 2000 novel Monkey Beach, along with Loretta Todd's 2020 adaptation.While...

Mailbag 3: Reese's Book Club & Forever Teas

03 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We're circling back to listener Victoria's email about A Cuban Girl's Guide to Tea and Tomorrow being chosen as a Reese's Book Club selection, Joe mak...

A Cuban Girl's Guide To Tea and Tomorrow (Book Club)

28 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's time for Book Club as Brenna and Joe (along with input from listener Tea, Books & Chocolate) discuss Laura Taylor Namey's delightful 2019 rom...

Mailbag 2: Own Voices

24 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Our second week of mailbag brings us questions about Own Voices from listener Tea, Books and ChocolateWanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitte...

Jasper Jones

21 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Thanks to a suggestion from listener Toni, Brenna and Joe check out Craig Silvey's celebrated 2009 book Jasper Jones, as well as Indigenous filmmaker ...

Mailbag 1: International Picks

17 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

On the inaugural edition of the HKHS mailbag, we discuss a few titles for future coverage courtesy of listener Miriam.Wanna connect with the show? Fol...

Reservation Dogs S02

14 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Brenna and Joe *finally* check out S02 of Sterlin Harjo's Reservation Dogs and we're still head over heels for this series. We're not in sync, though:...

XOXO: Gossip Girl S02E10 (2023)

09 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's the end of the road for HBO Max's Gossip Girl revamp, so expect plenty of sighs and complaints as Jenny, Ari and Joe say goodbye.First we tackle ...

Batman vs Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

07 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Listener Max is taking Brenna far outside of her comfort zone as we discuss Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2016) by James Tynion IV an...

XOXO: Gossip Girl S02E09 (2023)

02 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Jenny, Ari and Joe are back to unpack the penultimate episode of HBO Max's Gossip Girl and even though we know the show has been cancelled, we're stil...

All American Boys (Banned Book 10)

31 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Banned Book Club comes to an end with Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely's All American Boys (2015), a book about racialized police violence from t...

XOXO: Gossip Girl S02E08 (2023)

26 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Jenny, Ari and Joe are delighted that Gossip Girl FINALLY gives Luna her own episode (and shitty parent, natch). It's time for the Tribeca Film Festiv...

Adventures in Babysitting (1987)

24 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Grab your Playboy because Brenna and Joe are headed into the big scary city with Chris Columbus' 1987 feature directorial debut, Adventures in Babysit...

XOXO: Gossip Girl S02E07 (2023)

19 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Welcome back listeners. This week Jenny, Joe and Ari are divided as Georgina Sparks' two episode run comes to an end, Kate executes an odd plan and th...

Rhymes for Young Ghouls (2013)

17 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We're celebrating the late great Indigenous filmmaker Jeff Barnaby with a look at 2013's Rhymes for Young Ghouls. C/W: infanticide, suicide, drug abus...

XOXO: Gossip Girl S02E06 (2022)

12 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Georgina Sparks is back, and Ari, Jenny and Joe couldn't be more excited! This wild energy is exactly what Gossip Girl needs, particularly when we're ...

XOXO: Gossip Girl S02E05 (2022)

05 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Welcome back listeners. We've hit the snoozy halfway point of S02 of HBO Max's revamped Gossip Girl...but "Games, Trains, and Automobiles" is a bore.F...